Sorption of the natural endocrine disruptors,oestrone and 17 beta-oestradiol in the aquatic environment

Adsorption of hydrophobic contaminants at the particle/water interface is one of the key processes controlling their fate in the aquatic environment. The sorption of the natural female hormones oestrone and 17-oestradiol has been studied under simulated riverine conditions. Both the kinetics and the effects of varying fundamental environmental parameters (e.g. sediment properties) on the thermodynamic equilibrium partition coefficient (K _p) have been studied in continuous and batch sorption experiments, respectively. Results showed that the sorption of oestrone and 17-oestradiol by sediment was relatively slow, reaching equilibrium in 50 days. In addition, relatively small adsorption of both oestrone and 17-oestradiol onto the sediment was observed, with K _p values between 200 and 250 mL g^–1. The comparable K _p values of the two compounds reflect their structural similarity. It can be concluded that the two endocrine disruptors, oestrone and 17-oestradiol remain primarily in association with the aqueous phase.     

Triterpenoid and caffeic acid derivatives in the leaves of ragweed, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ambrosia artemisiifolia</Emphasis> L. (Asterales: Asteraceae), as feeding stimulants of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ophraella communa</Emphasis> LeSage (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Summary. The leaf beetle Ophraella communa infests almost exclusively Ambrosia artemisiifolia in the fields of Japan, even though it normally feeds on several Asteraceous plants. A filter paper bioassay showed that the feeding of O. communa is strongly stimulated by methanolic extracts of A. artemisiifolia. The feeding stimulants for O. communa have been isolated from methanolic extracts of A. artemisiifolia. -Amyrin acetate, -amyrin acetate, 5-caffeoylquinic acid (chlorogenic acid) and 3,5-dicaffeoylquinic acid from A. artemisiifolia have been identified as feeding stimulants for O. communa. Triterpenoid derivatives (-amyrin acetate or -amyrin acetate) and caffeic acid derivatives (3, 5-dicaffoylquinic acid or 5-caffeoylquinic acid) showed feeding stimulant activity when mixed together.     

Soil Lead at Elementary Public Schools: Comparison Between School Properties and Residential Neighbourhoods of New Orleans

Soil studies, conducted in Maryland, Minnesota and Louisiana, have described the urban pattern of lead contamination. They have shown that the highest amounts of lead cluster within the interior of the largest cities. The results of the New Orleans urban patterns of distribution of soil lead provided the basis for further study. The hypothesis was tested that elementary school properties have the same pattern of soil lead contamination as their neighbouring residential communities. Thirty New Orleans Public Elementary Schools were selected for this study. Surface samples (2.5cm or 1 inch depth) were collected from playgrounds and next to entrances of each school. Results showed that soil lead on school properties follows the same relative contamination patterns (pvalue10^–5) as soil lead on residential properties of neighbouring communities. Schools however, have significantly lower lead contamination than the neighbouring residential properties. Innercity school properties present a higher risk of soil lead exposure than mid and outercity schools. Soils next to innercity school entrances showed the highest lead, with 18.5% having concentrations over 400gg^–1. Systematic landscaping around the school entrances would significantly reduce the hazard from lead dust contaminated soils.     

Distribution of Poly(β-propiolactone) Aerobic Degrading Microorganisms in Different Environments

The distribution of degading microorganisms of high molecular weight poly(-propiolactone) (PPL), whose individual structural units are similar to those of poly(-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and poly(€-caprolactone) (PCL), was examined. Despite the fact that PPL is a chemosynthetic polymer, many kinds of PPL-degrading microorganisms were found to be distributed as resident populations widely in natural environments. A total of 77 strains of PPL-degrading microorganisms was isolated. From standard physiological and biochemical tests, at least 41 strains were referred to as Bacillus species. Microbial degradation of fibrous PPL proceeded rapidly in some enrichment cultures but was not as complete as that of PHB. Most of the isolated PPL-degrading microorganisms were determined to be PCL degraders and/or PHB degraders. Therefore, it can be assumed that mostly PPL is recognized by the microorganisms as PHB or another natural substrate of the same type as which PCL is regarded. Microbial degradation of PPL was confirmed by some Bacillus strains from type culture collections. The similarity of microbial degradation between PPL and PCL was found to be very close.     

FeCl3改性MOFs在低温下对Hg0的吸附性能

为提高吸附剂对Hg0（零价汞）的吸附效率,利用MOFs（金属有机框架）材料发达的孔隙结构和高比表面积（1 997.010 0 m2/g）,采用FeCl₃溶液浸渍改性,制备了吸附剂FeCl₃@MIL-101（Cr）用于脱除Hg0.在小型固定床反应器上考察了浸渍浓度、反应温度、氧含量等对Hg0去除的影响.结果表明:FeCl₃@MIL-101（Cr）在进口ρ（Hg0）为2×10-3 mg/L,c（FeCl₃）为0.2 mol/L,反应温度60℃,气体流速400 mL/min,φ（O₂）为1%的条件下,吸附穿透时间长达62 h,相应的吸附容量为14.27 mg/g.在此基础上,进一步利用BET（比表面积测试）、SEM（扫描电镜）-EDX（能量色散X射线光谱）、XRD（X射线衍射）、XPS（X射线光电子能谱）等常用表征手段研究了改性前后吸附剂的物理化学特性,证明了吸附剂FeCl₃@MIL-101（Cr）吸附零价汞是物理吸附与化学吸附共同作用的结果,含氯官能团在吸附Hg0过程中也发挥了相当大的作用,并且氧气可促进其吸附效果.最后,分析了其吸附机理.研究显示,该种吸附剂在低温条件下具有较为优良的脱汞性能,应用前景良好.      

反硝化菌对烟气汞吸附特性研究

采用反硝化菌对烟气中Hg~0、Hg~(2+)的吸附特性进行研究,反硝化菌对Hg~0和Hg~(2+)吸附性能良好,在pH为8、初始Hg~0(Hg~(2+))浓度为95.7μg·m-3(0.4μg·L-1)和吸附剂用量为0.35 g·L-1时,Hg~0和Hg~(2+)的吸附效率分别达到43.01%和98.12%.反硝化菌吸附Hg~0的过程遵循拟一级动力学,符合Langmuir等温吸附模型,最大吸附容量为126.1μg·g-1.反硝化菌吸附Hg~(2+)遵循拟二级动力学模型,符合Langmuir等温吸附模型,最大吸附容量为36.23μg·g-1.采用傅里叶红外光谱(FTIR)和热场发射环境扫描电镜-能谱电子背散射衍射系统(EDS)表征吸附前后的反硝化菌,结果表明吸附过程中细菌表面的糖环、磷酸及脂肪化合物基团发挥了吸附汞作用.     

一种新型四齿1,2-HOPO螯合剂的合成、金属配位研究

以6-羟基-2-吡啶羧酸为原料,经5步反应合成得到一种新型四齿β-二酮1,2-羟基吡啶酮衍生物。通过红外、核磁、质谱对其结构进行了表征。采用电位-光谱结合的方法,测定了四齿β-二酮1,2-羟基吡啶酮衍生物与UO2+2、Cu~(2+)、Zn~(2+)和Fe~(3+)的络合能力。结果表明,四齿β-二酮1,2-羟基吡啶酮衍生物对UO2+2和Fe3+有明显的络合能力,有望成为一种新型铀酰离子促排剂(p UO2=15.4)和铁螯合剂(p Fe=21.22)。     

Fate and transport of the β-adrenergic agonist ractopamine hydrochloride in soil–water systems

The feed additive ractopamine hydrochloride was fortified at four concentrations into batch vials containing soils that differed in both biological activity and organic matter(OM).Sampling of the liquid layer for 14 days demonstrated that ractopamine rapidly dissipated from the liquid layer. Less than 20% of the fortified dose remained in the liquid layer after 4 hr,and recoveries of dosed ractopamine ranged from 8 to 18% in the liquid layer at 336 hr. Sorption to soil was the major fate for ractopamine in soil:water systems, i.e., 42%–51% of the dose at14 days. The major portion of the sorbed fraction was comprised of non-extractables; a smaller fraction of the sorbed dose was extracted into water and acetone, portions which would be potentially mobile in the environment. Partitioning coefficients for all soils suggested strong sorption of ractopamine to soil which is governed by hydrophobic interactions and cation exchange complexes within the soil OM. Ractopamine degradation was observed, but to mostly non-polar compounds which had a higher potential than ractopamine to sorb to soil. The formation of volatiles was also suggested. Therefore, despite rapid and extensive soil sorption,these studies indicated a portion of ractopamine, present in manures used to fertilize soils,may be mobile in the environment via water-borne events.